Pastor’s Note May 17, 2026

Dear Parishioners:

One of the more influential moments in my early days as a worker was also one of the more terrifying. I had recently graduated from college and found employment with a local small business that specialized in home improvement. My work involved mainly core administrative tasks in the office, something that was well within my comfort zone. Yet a few months in, after a twist in circumstances, I was being sent out, alone, to survey a prospective job site project. Now this was terrifying! Although I knew my way around the estimating processes and had accompanied my boss on a few occasions, this was a whole other level! What it ended up being, however, was a moment of profound growth, confidence, and interest in this aspect of the business. It makes me think about the Ascension, this moment marking the departure of Jesus and the commissioning of the first disciples. They also had to feel like they were terrified in the face of a daunting task, a mission of epic proportions, and their own inadequacies. They were staring upward, trembling, I have to imagine, before the magnitude of their mission that Jesus had just left them. They had to be so aware of their smallness, their inadequacies, their inexperience. And yet, they are moved forward by Jesus’ promise, by the solemn word of the Lord to be with them, to send the power of the Spirit, and to make them witnesses to all peoples.

Finally, we offer our prayerful gratitude for the recently ordained deacons, including Deacon Jhonny Escobar. May God bless and guide their ministry!

God’s peace,

Fr. John